WINTHROP, ROBERT CHARLES Ameri can orator and political leader, a descendant of Governor John Winthrop (1588-1649), was born in Boston, Mass., on May 12, 1809. He graduated at Harvard in 1828, studied law with Daniel Webster and in 1831 was admitted to the bar. He was a member of the Massachusetts house of representatives in 1834-4o—for the last three years as speaker. From 1840 to 185o, except for a short intermission (April–Dec. 1842), he was a representative in the lower house in Congress. He soon became prominent and was speaker of the 30th Congress though his conservatism on slavery and kindred questions displeased extremists, North and South, who prevented his re-election as speaker of the 31st Con gress. In July 1850 he was appointed to the seat in the U.S. Senate left vacant by Daniel Webster's resignation, but was de feated in the regular election held in the following year by a coali tion of Democrats and Free Soilers. In the same year (1851) he
was defeated for governor of Massachusetts by the same coalition.
Thereafter he was never a candidate for political office. With the breaking up of the Whig Party he became an independent, and supported Millard Fillmore in 1856, John Bell in 1860 and Gen.
G. B. McClellan in 1864. He was president of the Massachusetts Historical Society from 1855 to 1885. He died in Boston, on Nov. 16, Among his publications were Addresses and Speeches (1852-86) ; Life and Letters of John Winthrop (1864-67) ; and Washington, Bowdoin and Franklin (1876). See R. C. Winthrop, Jr., Memoir of R. C. Winthrop (1897) ; and C. F. Adams, Jr., Theodore Lyman and Robert Charles Winthrop, Jr. (1906).